


Falling for you

by scriobh



Category: The Maze Runner (2014), The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-31
Updated: 2014-08-31
Packaged: 2018-02-15 14:52:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2233077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scriobh/pseuds/scriobh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I can’t show up to my ex’s wedding alone. So do me a favor and be the best friend that you are and date me for a night."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Falling for you

“Newt?”

The boy glanced up from the book he was reading to see Thomas entering his room. He shot him a smile. “What’s up?”

“So here’s the thing,” Thomas let the door swing shut behind him as he went and sat on the edge of Newt’s bed. The blond shifted so he was seated beside him and then tucked down the corner of the page he was on before setting his book aside. Thomas fiddled with the paper in his hands before pushing it over to Newt. “Teresa’s getting married. To Aris—you remember him, right?”

Newt nodded, scanning the wedding invitation. “Yeah, I remember he was a right prick to you when you were with Teresa. They’re seriously getting married? She’s much too good for that creature.”

“I know, but we still talk even after everything and she wants me to go to the wedding. And I can’t really say no, right? I mean, because she’s still kind of my friend. But if I show up alone, Aris is going to think that he did actually manage to ruin my life when Teresa broke up with me for him. Which he did, for a while, but I can’t let him know that.”

“So don’t go alone,” Newt shrugged. “Ask Brenda to go with you. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind, seeing as it’s you.” He smirked, nudging Thomas’ shoulder.

“Except there’s the problem of Jorge. Teresa knows that they’ve been together for years.” He turned to Newt, widening his eyes imploringly. “Would you please go with me and pretend to be my date? It’s just for the night, I swear. I can tell Teresa whatever story about us breaking up but still being friends later on, but I marked down that I’d be bringing a plus one and I _can’t_ show up to my ex’s wedding alone. So do me a favor and be the best friend that you are and date me for a night,” he pleaded, playfully fluttering his eyelashes at the elder.

Newt let out a laugh and swatted him away. “Right, let me just go grab my tux.”

“I’m serious, Newt.” Thomas whined.

“Me too, Tommy. I’m hardly the person to begrudge someone a pity date—Hey!” he ducked away as Thomas hit his arm. “Might want to be nicer to your boyfriend, dick. I won’t deign to be in an abusive relationship.” He said loftily, the corners of his lips turned upward in a badly hidden smile.

“So you’ll seriously go? You don’t mind?”

Newt shook his head. “It’ll be more fun than writing the paper I’m supposed to be doing. Besides, I never liked Aris anyway. It’ll be great to shove something back in his face, even if it’s not quite true.”

Thomas threw his arms around his friend. “Thank you so much! I owe you one.”

“Yeah you do,” Newt patted Thomas with a hand that was trapped against his chest. “Now get off. I do actually have to go find a suit now.”

“Right,” Thomas let his arms fall back to his sides as he stood up. “Okay, so we should probably leave in like two hours. We can take a taxi there. Make sure you look amazing—not that you ever wouldn’t, because—” Thomas cut himself off, cheeks going red. “Just… uh. Two hours.” He nodded shortly and left the room.

Newt’s eyebrows drew together in concern, but he merely shook his head and got to his feet, moving to his closet to search for his suit and pants somewhere near the back as Minho peeked his head into the room.

“Heard someone’s got a date with Thomas,” he waggled his eyebrows insinuatingly.

“Fake date, asshole,” Newt threw a pillow at him, but it hit the door as Minho backed out quickly with a laugh.

“I hope you two are very happy together!” he yelled as he walked away from Newt’s room.

“Oh, we are! We’re actually heading off to our wedding in a couple hours, and you’re not invited!” Newt called after him.

“Just make sure you send me a video of your honeymoon. It’ll make up for neither of you making me your best man, traitors!”

Newt laughed and shook his head, finally locating his clothes and pulling them out of the closet. Just two hours until he got to go on a ‘date’ with Thomas.

\--

Thomas had insisted that the car stop two blocks away from the wedding, so he and Newt had to walk the rest of the way. “They can’t know I don’t have a _car_ , Newt!” Thomas hissed, to which Newt simply rolled his eyes.

“You don’t even have your license, but I hardly think Aris is going to believe that’s because you’re not with Teresa anymore.”

“He’ll still judge me and I don’t want to deal with that. I’ve got a great life and I honestly love it, but he’ll still manage to make me feel like shit about it.”

Newt threw an arm around Thomas’ shoulders as they neared the building. “I’ve got your back in there. And anyway, if Aris is going to spend his wedding day being negative to you, then he’s just stupid and you have the better life by default, so you’ve won.”

Thomas nodded to himself. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. Thanks,” he smiled at Newt, and then they entered.

Both looked around in awe at the elaborate decorations garnishing every inch of the hall before they spotted the bar.

“Want anything to drink?”

Thomas shook his head. “You can go check out what they have, though. I want to see if Teresa’s around.”

“Suit yourself, but she’s probably in some separate room so Aris doesn’t see her dress or whatever.” He waltzed off over to the bar and leaned up against it, though all he ended up requesting was a water. Thomas circled the room, looking for his only other friend who would be present even though he knew that Newt was likely right and she would be off somewhere else getting ready.

Minutes passed before he finally gave up and went back to find Newt, but before he could get to him, he was confronted by Aris and another man.

“Thomas! What on earth are you doing here?” he crowed, stepping resolutely into his path.

“Teresa invited me,” Thomas replied warily, glancing over Aris’ shoulder to locate Newt still at the bar though now chatting with a stranger. Thomas frowned.

“Oh, that’s right, she did mention something about you wanting to come.” Thomas rolled his eyes. “Still can’t let go of her, huh? It’s a shame. There’s nothing worse than going to a wedding alone—not that I would know, of course. And especially an _ex’s_ wedding. Man, Thomas, you—”

“Excuse me,” Thomas said as he saw the man Newt had been talking to put his hand on his arm without any visible intent to remove it.

“Oh come on, Thomas, don’t run away.”

“I’m not. I just saw my _date_ ,” he threw back over his shoulder as he half ran over to Newt. He slid next to him and looped his arm around his waist, glowering at the other man.

“Tommy! This is Ryan. He—”

“Shit, man, you didn’t say you were with someone,” Ryan said, dropping his hand from Newt’s arm.

Newt looked confused. “You didn’t ask.”

Ryan shook his head. “Never mind. It was nice meeting you. Hey,” he looked to Thomas. “You got really lucky with him.” He said before grabbing his drink and walking off.

Newt turned to face Thomas, eyebrows raised.

“He was flirting with you,” Thomas explained.

“No he wasn’t.” Newt countered immediately. “We were just having a conversation.”

“Yeah,” Thomas nodded. “Which he was using to flirt with you. God, you’re oblivious,” he shook his head, smiling faintly.

“Well, Mr. I apparently know all about flirting, we should go sit down. The wedding should start any minute.”

“Lead the way,” Thomas let his hand fall from Newt’s side but then he quickly entwined their fingers. Newt glanced at him. “I just saw Aris,” Thomas answered the unspoken question. “And I don’t want to deal with him again so soon.” Newt nodded silently, squeezing Thomas’ hand slightly and then playfully swinging their arms as they walked.

“We’re going to be so couple-y they’re going to have to give us an award—in fact, we should get the rings instead of those two,” Newt grinned, leaning over as they sat down to press a kiss to Thomas’ cheek. The younger boy blushed immediately and Newt laughed, Thomas watching him longingly. “Come on, you can’t get all embarrassed. You asked me to be your boyfriend tonight, and I’m damn well gonna do a good job of it. I’ll hold your hand and open doors for you and look at you like you mean everything in the world to me…” Newt trailed off, biting his lip as he got into dangerous territory in his mind. “Anyway, Aris will be regretting everything he’s ever said to you by the end of the night. Trust me.”

Thomas turned to him. “Thank you for doing this. Seriously. I know it’s all kind of weird—”

“Hey, I told you I don’t mind in the slightest. You’re my best mate, Tommy, and I’d do anything for you.”

“And you have no idea how much I seriously appreciate it,” Thomas said sincerely, staring at Newt. The elder glanced up at Aris’ smug face at the front of the room and then back to Thomas.

“Like I said,” Newt held his gaze. “Anything for you.”

Thomas’ cheeks flushed a darker red and he directed his gaze down to his hands folded in his lap just before everyone rose as the processional music began to play. The boys stood and turned along with the rest of the congregation as people started to come down the center aisle, followed at the end by Teresa and her father.

“She looks beautiful,” Newt leaned over and whispered to Thomas. He nodded, staring at her as she passed them and went up to join Aris. “Sure there’s no lingering feelings?”

Thomas rolled his eyes. “You know there’s not. It’s been ages…” he trailed off, watching as the wedding began. He was fairly certain that Newt never caught any of his wistful glances in his direction throughout the ceremony.

\--

With the wedding finished without further incident with Aris, everyone proceeded on to the reception where the newly-wed couple led the dancing before people began to join in. Thomas tugged Newt toward a table near the back of the room as the music swelled to encompass the massive space. He finally dropped down into a seat, pulling Newt down into the adjacent one. He leaned his chair over slightly and tipped it back so it was balanced on only two legs.

“You’ll fall like that,” Newt commented idly, taking a sip of water.

“No I won’t.”

Newt sighed dramatically. “Don’t tempt me, Tommy,” he stuck his foot out warningly, tapping on the legs in the air before Thomas petulantly let them fall back to the ground.

“You’re not a good boyfriend,” Thomas pretended to pout, folding his arms across his chest.

Newt scoffed. “Oh please, I’m the best boyfriend. I came to the wedding even though I hate Aris, didn’t I?”

“Okay, I’ll give you that,” Thomas grinned.

“We should dance.” Newt spoke before Thomas could say anything else.

Thomas raised his eyebrows. “Dance? Me? You realize that those two things have and will never go together, right? Seriously, it’s pointless to even try. I can’t dance at all.”

Newt rolled his eyes exasperatedly. “No, idiot, I meant like slow dance. Help solidify the idea that you really did move on from Teresa a long time ago into Aris’ bloody stupid little mind.”

“Oh… Well, he probably forgot about me for the moment. He’s dancing with Teresa right now—”

“And yet he keeps looking over here.” Thomas nearly jumped out of his seat when Newt slid his hand onto his thigh. “Calm down, Tommy, it’s just for show.” He surreptitiously nodded toward where Aris was in fact staring in Thomas’ direction with a condescending expression on his face.

“Hey, maybe he’s looking at you and not me,” Thomas said weakly, angry that Aris could still get to him just by being in the same room even after so much time had passed.

“I think he’s looking at us both,” Newt leaned closer, resting his chin on Thomas’ shoulder from behind. “And now he’s so terribly upset that he married Teresa because we’re both so much better looking than her but I suppose it can’t be helped now, can it?” he whispered, eliciting a smile from Thomas. “Come _on_ , Tommy, let’s dance.” He slid his hand from Thomas’ leg to his hand and dragged him unwillingly to his feet.

“Newt—”

“Nope,” Newt cut him off and pulled him along to the dance floor.

“Newt, come on, you know I can’t—”

“But I can, so come on.” Newt stopped at the edge of the dance floor and turned to face him. “Please, Tommy,” he held out his hand and, after several moments of deliberation, Thomas took it. Newt smiled briefly and tugged him closer, twining their fingers together and resting his other hand on Thomas’ waist. “It won’t be too bad, I promise,” he murmured, starting to sway and take small steps as the next song began. He only managed to hold Thomas’ gaze for a few moments before he blushed lightly and turned to look over Thomas’ shoulder. “Teresa looks pleased. Good. Aris, however…” he trailed off. “He’s just a right asshole. I wish Teresa was with someone better.” His eyebrows drew together pensively. “She would’ve done much better with you. Not that even she deserves you, mind.”

Thomas let out an incredulous laugh. “Please, _I’m_ too good for _her_?”

“In every possible way.”

“Wh—?” Newt spun him around them before catching him around the waist again. “Newt, you’re insane if you believe that.”

“Why did you ask me to come tonight, Tommy?” Newt asked, ignoring what Thomas had said.

“I… Because I couldn’t come alone, and I couldn’t not go, so…”

Newt shook his head and dropped Thomas’ hand, moving so both of his were positioned on Thomas’ waist as they began to just sway in place. “I meant why did you ask _me_? Why not someone else?”

“Th-there was no one else—no, I mean, because you’re my best friend—” Thomas swore and stopped talking.

“Tommy,” Newt caught and held Thomas’ gaze with his suddenly incredibly serious eyes. “Why me?”

Thomas sighed in defeat. “I mean… I thought that, well, when we met… Right at the beginning, I thought I’d made it pretty obvious that I had a massive crush on you. And you didn’t feel the same, so being your best friend was the next best thing.” He stammered nervously.

Newt froze in place, causing a couple to crash into his back and knock him forward into Thomas. He caught himself against the younger boy’s chest before quickly stepping back. “And that’s still how you feel?”

“Newt, you’re my _best_ friend. _Please_ can’t you just forget I ever said anything and let everything go on like it was? This doesn’t have to ruin anything, I swear—”

“Tommy—”

“I just—”

“ _Tommy_.” Thomas’ panicked gaze finally met Newt’s. “I never… I didn’t know that that’s how you felt, believe me. I would never have rejected you.” Thomas’ eyes widened. “Honestly, I never would. I’ve felt the same for so long, but I thought… well, the same as you did.”

“Are you actually being serious right now?”

“A hundred percent, Tommy.”

“So you like me—”

“And you like me.”

“Well… that worked out well.” Thomas laughed quietly, joined quickly by Newt before the elder pulled him into his arms. Thomas returned the embrace instantly, smiling into Newt’s shoulder.

“Good that, Tommy,” Newt murmured before pulling back with a grin. “Do you think we’ve stayed here long enough?”

Thomas looked around. “Well the reception is almost over… I’d say yes.”

“Good. We’re going.” Newt grabbed Thomas’ wrist and started to tow him out of the building.

“Wait, what—where are we going?”

Newt looked back over his shoulder at Thomas. “You owe me one, right? I’m cashing in. We’re going on a real date.”

“What right now?”

“Right now.” Newt nodded.

“But look at what we’re wearing—”

“It can be formal coffee. Tommy, I am not going to let my three years of pining after you end with us just going home separately and going to bed alone. We are going to go out tonight and get coffee together and have a real date if it kills the both of us.”

Thomas laughed. “Both of us?”

“Damn right. I’m dragging you down with me. You don’t get to avoid it.” He stopped abruptly and turned to face the brunet. “Seriously though, this is something you’re alright with?”

Thomas stepped forward and laced his arms around Newt’s neck. “I am so much more than alright with it.” Another few inches brought their smiling lips together, and suddenly all thoughts of Teresa and Aris had been entirely wiped from Thomas’ mind.

Newt pulled back first, unable to hide his grin. “I wanted to say something like I’m not the type to kiss before the first date, but it’s basically impossible to refuse you anything, so maybe we should head out before you manage to make me your willing slave, yeah?”

Thomas shook his head. “Nah, I think that’s something I’d actually be alright with, sorry.”

Newt narrowed his eyes at him for a moment before taking his hand. “So… coffee?”

Thomas nodded. “Coffee.”

They called a cab to take them to a coffee shop and ended up leaving when it arrived just minutes after Teresa and Aris drove off in a limo.

“You ready to ignore Aris’ entire pathetic excuse of an existence now?”

“More than ready.” Thomas smiled down at their entwined fingers. “Thanks for being my date tonight.”

“Anytime, Tommy. Anytime at all.”

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry I made Aris a jerk, but it was necessary.
> 
> ~All credit for characters to James Dashner~


End file.
